Conveyorized toasting devices can be used in high-volume cooking applications for in-line toasting of food items. Typically, a toasting device is composed of a chamber having an inlet for receiving a food item, a heated platen, a conveyor for conveying the food item along a toasting pathway adjacent the heated platen, and an outlet for discharging the toasted food item. When the food items toasted are hamburger buns, the toasting device commonly has an inlet on each side of the heated platen for separately receiving a bun crown and bun heel (collectively, “bun”). The inside, cut faces of the bun crown and heel may be simultaneously toasted along conveyorized toasting pathways on opposite sides of the platen.
Toasting buns with current conveyorized toasting devices has been known to deform the shape of the buns, causing “cupping” of the toasted cut surfaces of the bun crown and heel. Moreover, current devices have a limited capacity to quickly toast a bun and produce quality results. For example, raising the platen temperature reduces the time required for a bun to reach a desired temperature, but the platen temperature must not be high enough to burn the surface of the bun. A need therefore exists for a high-volume toasting device that provides fast, quality toasting of a cut bread surface and which reduces or eliminates cupping.